Glossary of Book and Ephemera Terms and Abbreviations
~~~ W ~~~
WAF / waf. With All Faults. A term meaning the book is basically intact but has a great deal of wear and tear which has not been listed in great detail.
waffled. seriously wrinkled.
wallet edge. a type of self-closing binding in which the binding material extends along the entire length of the rear [fore-edge], folds over the fore-edge and closes with a narrow tongue snapped to or inserted into a slot in the front [board].
warbly. [wobbly].
warped. bent or curved; a flaw usually affecting [boards].
washed. evenly colored, usually referring to the edges of the [textblock]. A [topstain] refers to the top washed in a particular color.
washi (Japanese). [rice paper].
water damaged. wrinkled and possibly discolored from dampness or water. If discoloration is present, the item is usually described as [waterstained].
waterstained. discolored from dampness or water, with perhaps some shrinking or wrinkling of the pages or binding. Waterstains exist in degrees from very mild (nearly invisible) to very severe. Compare [water damaged].
wet glass mark. another term for [cup ring]; a circular stain caused by a damp drinking glass or cup placed on the item.
wire photo. another name for [file photo].
Wire-O Binding (brand name). metal spiral binding in which the spiral is visible along each [joint] but is covered by the [backstrip].
wn. worn.
w/o. without.
wobbly / wobbles / warbly. parts are coming loose.
wood engraving. see [engraving].
woodcut. a type of [illustration] made from a carved wooden plate. Invented in China in the 700s, such pictures were common in the earliest books, but were gradually replaced beginning in the 1400s by [copper plate engravings], and later by [steel engravings].
wormed / worming. tiny holes bored unevenly through the binding or [textblock] by insect larva (bookworms). The holes are usually less than (3 mm) 1/8" in diameter and are most commonly seen in books of the 1700s or earlier.
wr / wrs. see [wraps].
wrap-around band. a type of [dust jacket] that is not as tall as the book. Usually a wrap-around band is the same length as a dust jacket but only about a third of the height. Sometimes seen as an additional piece of marketing over a normal jacket. Some small books, such as field guides, are published with only a wrap-around band. Also called half wrapper, demi jacket.
wraps / wrappers. 1. a [softcover] book. 2. the covers of a [softcover] book. Abbreviated wp, wr, wrs, wrps. Not the same as a [dust wrapper].
A ~ B ~ C ~ D ~ E ~ F ~ G ~ H ~ I ~ J ~ K ~ L ~ M
N ~ O ~ P ~ Q ~ R ~ S ~ T ~ U ~ V ~ W ~ XYZ
This glossary was written and compiled by Gwen Foss of Alan's Used Books with thanks to the many independent bookdealers of TomFolio.com.